May 20, 2018

A New (Family & Fishing) Fitness Plan

Anybody need to lose a couple pounds? I know I sure could stand to...

Here's the deal. I really don't do all that great a job of taking care of myself these days. I know I gotta eat healthier, exercise, lose some weight, all that great stuff that sounds wonderful in concept, but just never seems to stick. I'm getting a little older, my metabolism is slowing, I prefer to sleep as late as humanly possible before I get up to work an office job every day, and I don't like getting that "look" of disgust from the doctor when he reviews those high numbers in my bloodwork results. At least I don't smoke, guess I have that going for me.

First off, my family deserves better. I may currently be considered a "good husband & Dad" and be taking care of paying the bills and whatnot, but what good is that if I get laid up with a heart attack, stroke, develop type 2 diabetes, or who knows what else? Especially if it can be avoided. Genetics are always a bit of a wildcard, but regardless, going down the current path is kinda negligent.

Plus, (and this is probably a little self-serving), being a bit more fit is going to make fishing more fun, as it certainly can't make it any worse. A stronger core and less of a spare tire to lug around will definitely make this summer & fall's rock hopping, wet wading opportunities a bit easier to manage. And, maybe losing a few will give me some incentive to get down to the surf with a fly rod & reel and show off my new beach body as I flex my pecs hoisting a 30-pound redfish. Okay, let's not get ahead of ourselves here...

Anyway, I'm going to try and make some healthy changes starting today (why wait), and I may or may not use this blog to track the progress via "Fishing Fitness Footnotes" dropped in at the end of my ever random fishing posts (so if I do, bear with me).

I'm pretty sure I know what I need to do (although my 40+-year-old body probably won't respond quite as quickly as my 20 or 30-year-old once did). My problem is motivation. It comes in spurts (like this one), but rarely lasts past the first week or so. Especially when you've just had a long day at work, and really just want to eat that bag of "whatever" at night while you're decompressing on the couch and watching WWE Raw or catching up on all the shows you DVR'd last week. And I know, despite my behavior, a whole bag of goldfish crackers is not a single-serving size.

If you want in too, come aboard. Maybe we could create an online support group for fishing fitness, or at the very least email or comment encouragement on each other's blogs, Facebook, Twitter, (or whatever). I feel like I need to do this somewhat publicly so the shame of failure will keep me on the right path.

So that's it. Wish me luck, I'm gonna need it. I'm already hungry.

Fishing Fitness Footnotes:

Date: 5/20/2018

Current weight: 216 lbs

Current waist size: 38

Exercise Plan: DDP Yoga

--------

And on a totally unrelated side note that has a little more basis in fishing, I did a little reader poll on tenkara rod preference over on my Tenkara Angler Instagram last week, the results are posted over on the TA blog. If that's something of interest to you, check it out HERE!

11 comments:

Great decision. You're 38 and still young. As long as you stay active and watch your caloric intake, you will drop weight. I'm 51 and have definitely changed my food intake to incorporate less meat and more vegetables as I've aged. I no longer like eating large steaks like I used to in my 30's and 40's. I still have chicken and fish, though I try to eat more fish than chicken. I still like my eggs but now I separate them and just use the egg whites. I like fried food, but I keep an eye on what I'm having and don't overdo it. I had two annual physicals recently, one for the city I work for and one for the VA. Blood work is normal as it has always been. You can easily do this.

I would suggest you do two things. You will feel better and the pounds will quietly slip away.

Do more walking ( regularly). I know you Americans like your cars and the climate in Florida is probably a bit warm at times for walking, but If you can walk there then forget the car. Try and do three miles a day then increase . However you could buy yourself a treadmill then it can be blazing hot outside or blowing a hurricane and you can still get your daily exercise (No expensive Gym fees either).

As R Ruff says, lay off the steaks. More veg, chicken and fish. Lay off the chips and candy.😀

The big one for me has been cutting out night time eating. I try to make sure I have at least 12 hours between my last PM eat and my breakfast. Also, avoid as much possible that comes prepared in a package (processed). Good luck!

Nothing beats 20-40 mins of cardio 3-5 times per week, but yeah, who has time or motivation for that with a desk job? Solution? Quit said desk job. The fitness will follow... ;) Not even kidding though!

Trying to catch up on posts working in reverse, I made a comment on a previous post of yours about how I like what you've been doing, and this just justifies that I should be doing the same to keep myself in check. The GF has been trying very hard not to micro manage my food decisions and has been wanting me to talk to a trainer or someone on a weekly basis. Is it a coincidence that I read this far back on your blog posts, I don't know ha. If you have started an email group please feel free to add me. I will probably be making some fitness type posts somewhere on my social media so that it's not right in everyones face, but it will be there, and keep me accountable and on track...hopefully. I've been down this road so many times. So many ups and downs. My will power only goes so long. Thanks for this Mike!

MichaelA bit of advice here------cut back on sweets, snakes, greasy foods, red meat and exercise more------I retired at age 60 and weighted 240 lbs, in august of 2007, today thanks to eating right and 3 times a week in the gym I tip the scales at 175. I wish I had made a commitment to a healthier lifestyle at your age-----trust me you are on the right track!!! Thanks for sharing